U.K to Greece - Car & Ferry advice needed!

We want to take a family of 3 from Manchester to Greece using car and ferry. Can anyone please tell the easiest way to arrange this. If you can give us contact numbers and/or route maps that would be great. If someone has already done this themselves we would appreciate a breakdown of prices etc...

Hi, I can't give you prices at the moment as I am in middle of packing and about to set off for Greece.

However, we went to Halkidiki three years on the trot, for 9 months at a time.

The route we took was drive from Derbyshire to Dover, ferry over to Calais. Stayed overnight just outside Calais. Next day drove to Strasbourg, stayed overnight. Next day drove to Sirmione on Lake Garda and stayed overnight. Last day drove to Venice and got ferry over to Patras, two nights on board. Arrived early morning and drove to Halkidiki.

Timings. We based our journeys on days of around 350 miles. We could have driven from Strasbourg straight through to Venice, but fancied Lake Garda and liked it so much we kept to the same itinerary all three years.

Boat over to Patras, I believe there is now a superfast ferry which takes the timings down to one night.

There is a good ferry site [www.ferries.gr] run by Paleologos Shipping. We used this company all three years. We booked tickets and they were delivered to us by special delivery within days.

We did not really budget hard as we were on a three year break from work. So our hotels although not 5* luxury were more upmarket than cheaper end. In Calais a lovely BW chateau, in Strasbourg a city hotel (only city I did not feel safe in though, be careful there), in Sirmione a lovely hotel in the old town 4*.

From what I can remember the ferry to and from Venice/Patras was cheaper than the ferry return from Dover to Calais !!! (they do not give discount for long term returns, I can never see the reason for this as you only take up the same space on the boat whether one day later or one year, anyway.....)

We know of other people doing different routes, but this one worked for us. We also used the toll roads in France as they were so quick, well maintained and empty! In Switzerland you had to buy a toll pass, but this lasts for one year so was valid for return. We did get a speeding fine first time through Switzerland coming out of a tunnel, as did hundreds of other people. But it cost us about £400, for about 5mph over limit. A lesson learned for our future trips that was. They are very keen on speed and fines in Switzerland.

Hope this helps a bit. If you are not going immediately and have time for more info, let me know and I will get back to you.

However, off to finish packing and off to Greece til 7 July.

Cheers
Jane

BTW, we enjoyed every minute of our journeys. The motorway stops in Italy/Switzerland were fantastic, not like motorway cafes as we know them. All fresh food, loads of choice, fruits, breads you name it they had it, marvellous.

Hi,
Besides travelling by ferry from Italy which can be quite expensvie you can also drive through the old Yugoslavia. It is totally safe to do so again and you shouldn't have any problems. You'll pass through slovenia, croatia, serbia and Skopje (don't know if iI've missed any out there) your insurance should cover this but make sure that you have got a green card for serbia. All of these places are becoming tourist destinations again so you should be fine and it's probably a bit cheaper than the ferry from Italy which is getting quite expensive

Hi MARK
I have to agrre with Cheryl that is totaly safe to drivre through the old Yugoslavia. I've beeing going
to Austria since the war was finished (nearly 10 years now) every X'mass and we had no problem
AT ALL !! And is very cheap too !!
If you still want to drive through Italy here is a route from England:
Harwich A120
Harbour Port Stenna Lines
Hook of Holland
A20 Rotterdam
A20 - E25 Gouda
A12 - E35 Arnhem
A 3 - E35 Oberhausen
A3 - E35 Kolhn

PS
Saying that please let me wish a safe journey to my Friends John and Barbara from Bolton as they are on the way to halkidiki by car, driving through Yugoslavia too! ( I believe they are near
Zagreb at the moment)

They aren't there yet they are syill in Salzburg for a couple of days pretending to be cultural!!! they should be with you by the weekend to disturb your piece for a few weeks. love to all and wish that i was there too xxx

Hi Cheryl !!
Tell them to bring some sunshine from ....Austria as it rains and rains and rains here for the last
4 - 5 days!!!
Give our love to Elanor and to John. Oh to Borris too!!
Are you coming this year ??
Love to all
Sakis and Family

Hi Cheryl, Just a few lines to say hello while you are on here, where are you girl ? I saw your mum and dad yesterday, they are very good but dad needs a bit of tanning ahahah, Kerry and Jay are having a great time shame you and John arent here , never mind theres always next year! please give Elanor a huge cuddle for me ,mum says she just like you ..... well take care love from Debbie and Tony xxx

Only just seen your messages from you two, sorry that i didn't reply. No we can't can't make it this year as we are poor. But if you would like to set up a Kripigi fund for us in Akropolis and Casablanca to raise flight money we'll be over!!!! Really wish that we could be there, will try for next year!!!

JUST A THOUGHT. I AM A 62-YEAR-OLD, ACTIVE AND ENERGETIC, SEMI-RETIRED GP AND I AM THINKING OF DRIVING FROM UK TO MAINLAND GREECE PLUS 2 SMALL DOGS. I CAN GO ALONE I GUESS, BUT A COMPANION TO SHARE JOURNEY, DRIVING AND DIRECTIONS MIGHT BE REALLY GOOD. REASON FOR GOING - WONDERING WHETHER WE (DOGS AND I) MAY END UP LIVING THERE. ALSO ADORE CLASSICAL SITES, MUSEUMS ETC AND LIKE ATHENS CONSIDERING I AM NOT A LOVER OF TOWNS AND CITIES. ALSO HAVEN'T HAD A BREAK FOR 18 MONTHS AND AM THINKING OF GOING THIS V LATE AUTUMN OR WINTER OR EVEN NEXT SPRING. THANKS, AND WHOEVER YOU ARE AND WHEREVER YOU ARE HEADING - BON VOYAGE, GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS...

I drove it last June, my girlfiend flew over from Greece, I drove down from Yorkshire to Gatwick, picked her up there, drove to Dover, got the ferry to Dunkirk using Norfolkline ferries, cost £34. Stopped overnight in Dunkirk at the Formula One Motel, cost 30 euros for a room (www.hotelformule1.com). Drove then through Belgium, Luxembourg, back into France and stopped at another Formula 1 at a place called Mulhouse near the Swiss border, cost again 30 euros. Next day drove through Switzerland (very nice drive) and stopped at the Motel Vezia in Lugano (www.motel.ch) cost about 100 euros. Following day short drive down through Italy to Ancona. Pre-booked ferry tickets via a company called aferry (www.aferry.to) cost was 184 euros for a cabin for 2 and 64 euros for the car, picked up the tickets at the ferry place, overnight ferry ride to Igoumenitsa, Greece, and then a nice few hours drive through the mountains down to Thessaloniki and then on to Halkidiki.
Brilliant drive, took 5 days from leaving Yorkshire....well worth it....and I'm still here!

The cheapest way is,calais in to belgium,germany,austria,then italy & get a ferry from venice,ancona,barry,brindisi to iganamitsa main land greece.The whole from the uk will be about 500 pounds i think or you can go through serbia n macedonia

Hello
We're thinking of driving to Piraeus from the UK in December this year in time for X'mas. We want, if possible, to get there all the way by road from France (i.e. avoiding ferry crossings from Italy). Could anyone please help with an idea of costs (with minimum stopovers), advice about road conditions in the winter , green cards etc. The info on this website is very useful but its a little out of date (2006), so if anyone has any info of today's prices, conditions etc, I'd be very grateful.
Many thanks
Bijon

I dont know how old your note is but I would love to talk to you! I own a small house on mainland Greece - I turned 60 this year have 2 springer spaniels and would love to live in Greece long term for for a good while. I am ending a very sad relationship with an unadventurous man - I have owned the house in Greece for 20 years - the views are spectacular, and because it belongs to me and he wants to stay in
Cheshire, he isnt interested. I have visited my house alone for 3 years now. My house is in the Pelion region of Greece - a gorgeous part of mainland Greece and near Volos. Am looking for a person who loves Greece as much as I do and wants to live there. I also want to help the many stray dogs in Greece - I have a fundraising background and am very good at raising funds.

If you want to contact me, would love to hear from you = if you dont, hope there is someone out there who thinks the same as I do!

Hi Susan,
I have a little house in Crete and although I am kind of stuck in the Uk caring for my mum I intend to travel with my dog who I rescued from Crete 5 years ago probably by car in the future. It was such a nightmare bringing him to the Uk on a plane. Would love to meet a like mindd person to keep in touch with till it is possible for me to travel again. Viv

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